Ahead of his Maple Leafs debut, defenseman Matt Benning discussed his return to the big leagues after battling injuries and biding his time in the AHL. Tonight in New York, Benning will dress for his first NHL game since October 29, 2024. Did you ever think at any point that this opportunity might not come […]
The post Matt Benning, ahead of his Leafs debut, on his return to the NHL: “My confidence is still there” appeared first on Maple Leafs Hotstove .
Oh, Auston, set the record there just to make JT laugh (later, when there are no cameras).
I wasn’t expecting this, since Kazuma Okamoto seems to profile best at first base. But he will be able to play third (maybe not at Ernie Clement’s level on defense) for at least the next couple of years. In Japan he was a three true outcome hitter. Lots of homers and strikeouts and a good […]
Like Tatsuya Imai on Thursday, Kazuma Okamoto is signing his big league deal one day before his posting window officially expires.
According to Jeff Passan , he’s headed to Toronto, where the Blue Jays continue their impressive and expensive offseason.
BREAKING: Japanese third baseman Kazuma Okamoto and the Toronto Blue Jays are in agreement on a free agent contract, sources tell ESPN. — Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 3, 2026
The terms of the deal for Kazuma Okamoto...
Guests: Mitchell Clinton at 28:20 and Adam Kimelman at 1:26:36.
Will the Winnipeg Jets ever win another game? Guess we will have to keep tuning in to find out…but the team keeps finding ways to lose even when the statistical information suggest that they shouldn’t.
After blowing a big lead in their last outing versus the Toronto Maple Leafs, the hockey team will head to the nation’s capital for a match against the Ottawa Senators on Saturday evening. The True Northers are in the midst of an 8 game losing streak that has seen the franchise plummet to t...
The Islanders host the Toronto Maple Leafs Saturday night on Long Island with a couple more lineup updates. Marshall Warren has been returned to Bridgeport, which — along with yesterday’s practice — would seem to indicate another run of Adam Boqvist on his offhand on the third pair with Scott Mayfield. And Bo Horvat, as […]
The Montreal Canadiens have been hammered by injuries this season. Several key pieces are currently out of the lineup. But eventually , players like Jake Evans, Patrik Laine, Kirby Dach and Alex Newhook will all be back. But that will make for a crowded forward corps. Habs insider Marco D'Amico feels the team will have to trade some excess roster pieces. I don't see how the Canadians don't make a trade between now and the trade deadline to maybe alleviate themselves with some of th...
For the fifth time in his young career, Joe Mazzulla is the Eastern Conference Coach of the Month. Mazzulla steered the Celtics to a 9-3 December, highlighted by wins over the Knicks, Raptors (twice), and Heat. The Celtics are 21-12, just 3.5 games out of first place in the conference with Jayson Tatum still sidelined. […]
The Jays signed Jeff Hoffman to a three-year, $33 million contract, before the 2025 season, after deciding not to sign Jordan Romano. Romano ended up with the Phillies, Hoffman’s former team, and had 8 saves and an 8.23 ERA in 49 games. It turned out the Jays were right not to sign him. Hoffman had […]
David Cone turns 63 today. Cone had two short stints with the Blue Jays. The Jays traded for him in 1992 at the end of August. We were in first place, 2.5 games ahead of the Baltimore Orioles. We were doing alright except for the 5th starter spot. Dave Stieb had the role, but his […]
After being named the NHL’s first star of November, Nathan MacKinnon followed it up with second star of December honors. Sandwiched between two other Team Canada centers, MacKinnon finished the month with 26 points in 14 games including 14 goals. Can the Colorado Avalanche superstar surpass the franchise record 57 goals this season? He currently […]
On Friday, the United States revealed its roster for the upcoming Winter Olympics. Initially, we knew that six players were confirmed for the team: Toronto’s Auston Matthews, Florida’s Matt Tkachuk, Ottawa’s Brady Tkachuk, Vegas center Jack Eichel, Bruins defender Charlie McAvoy, and Minnesota Wild defenseman Quinn Hughes. The rest of the mix was widely speculated and, to some, seemed to be set in stone. But Team USA’s general manager Bill Guerin and his inner circle still had some tough decis...
The Maple Leafs erased 4-1 and 5-4 deficits in a classic Bob Cole “everything is happening”-style hockey game to kick off the 2026 portion of the schedule in thrilling fashion. This was no Picasso defensively (or in net, for Joseph Woll), but playoff-bound teams need to win a few wild ones along the way over […]
The post Game Review: Matthews’ hat trick leads resilient Leafs’ comeback in wild win over Jets appeared first on Maple Leafs Hotstove .
Recap of the game.
Craig Berube addressed the media after his team’s 6-5 win over the Winnipeg Jets, which improved the Maple Leafs’ record to 19-15-6. On the team coming back from 2-0, 4-1, and 5-4 down to win in regulation: Good resilience and character coming back tonight. We were coming back the whole game, but we stuck with […]
The post Craig Berube on the Leafs’ come-from-behind 6-5 win over the Jets: “Good resilience and character coming back… I liked the guys’ attitude; everyone kept playing” appeared ...
The Toronto Maple Leafs are getting a big boost to their lineup for Thursday night's game against the Winnipeg Jets, as captain Auston Matthews is returning to action. Matthews missed the Leafs last game against the New Jersey Devils after blocking a shot last weekend against the Detroit Red Wings. He finished the game, but the swelling was too much the past few days, keeping Matthews out of the lineup against New Jersey. The Leafs went on to win the game 4-0, thanks to Joseph Woll standing on...
Auston Matthews returns to the lineup as the Maple Leafs hope to kick a tired, struggling Winnipeg Jets team while it’s down tonight at Scotiabank Arena (7:00 p.m. EST, Sportsnet Ontario/TSN3). Game Day Quotes Jets head coach Scott Arniel on his team losing its seventh straight game (0-4-3) in Detroit last night: It is getting […]
The post Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Winnipeg Jets – Game #40 Projected Lines, Preview & TV Info appeared first on Maple Leafs Hotstove .
As a lifelong fan of all three reincarnations of the Winnipeg Jets hockey team, I am well aware that us fans have had to deal with more than our fair share of disappointment over the years. Yet, I am not sure that any prior version of the Jets have been as disheartening as the 2025-26 roster.
Coming off a fantastic campaign that saw them win their first President’s Trophy, the True North franchise’s trajectory has absolutely plummeted this season, with the club going from the best team in...
Unsurprisingly, there is little Jays’ news today. The team signed Josh Winchowski to a two-year minor league contract. Winchowski is recovering from ‘internal brace surgery’. He’ll likely be able to pitch towards the end of this season, but then he should be good to go the second year. He’s a right-handed, 27-year-old pitcher who has […]
While Team Canada's Olympic team was named on New Years Eve, Team USA's team wasn't suppose to be known until Friday, however, thanks to some detective work from a few reporters , the team has been leaked. And yes, there's a bunch of players left off the roster that already have people shaking their heads. But, let's start with who was named, or will be named, and there's already six we know are heading to Milan. Auston Matthews, Brady Tkachuk, Quinn Hughes, Matthew Tkachuk, Jack Eichel and Ch...
A look at the projected lineups and pre-game interviews.
“I thought we played extremely well. The kill in the first period — the five-minute [major] — was huge. It was a huge momentum boost for us. The special teams were a huge part of this win, but I thought our five-on-five game was really solid. We didn’t give them much and kept them to […]
The post Logan Shaw makes franchise history, Toronto Marlies end 2025 with third straight win appeared first on Maple Leafs Hotstove .
After opening the season with a 3-20 record for the third straight year, the Washington Wizards are playing their best basketball of this rebuild. The Wizards are 5-4 over their last nine games, with wins over the Milwaukee Bucks, Memphis Grizzlies, Indiana Pacers and Toronto Raptors — three of which coming on the road. Before […]
The Brooklyn Nets had the NBA’s best defense in December. The Nets went 7-4 for the month and held all but two teams under league average scoring and efficiency. They picked up wins over the Raptors, Sixers, and Timberwolves (the latter two on the road), and their offense has come along as well. In fact, […]